From the deck of our house on April 29, 2015, I saw four sparrows of four species on our Lancaster County, Pennsylvania lawn in the suburbs, including at a bird bath close to the house. I thought they probably were males because they were magnificently beautiful in their own plain ways; handsomely dressed to impress the lady sparrows of their respective species with their health and vigor, all qualities that make them good fathers for the next generation of sparrows. All those sparrow species, which included song, white-throated, fox and chipping, had brownish backs and wings with darker streaking for camouflage, but each one had smaller, attractive parts of his plumage as well. Those parts also aid in the identification of each species, as do the songs they sing to establish breeding territories and attract mates.
All these common sparrow species feed on weed and grass seeds in winter. And they all visit bird feeders. But they consume mostly invertebrates during the warmer months and feed those little critters to their young that grow from the ample protein in those invertebrates.
Permanent resident song sparrows are gray-brown all over with black streaking on their upper body and lower. They are the plainest of this grouping of sparrows, and stay well hidden in the bushes they prefer inhabiting. The males sing cheerful ditties from shrubbery from warm afternoons in February through spring and summer. Song sparrows are one of the most abundant bird species in North America, partly due to their adapting to living in the ever-spreading suburban areas.
White-throated sparrows nest farther north than my home area, but winter here and farther south. They winter in weedy hedgerows, and in suburbs where feeders full of seeds are present. White-throats are so-named because each one does have a white throat patch. And males in spring have sharply contrasting black and white-striped crowns and a bright yellow patch of feathers in front of each eye, all of which makes them quite handsome to lady white-throats, and us.
White-throats have a lovely song they sing in spring before they migrate north to nest, as well as on their nesting grounds. The song begins with a low, short whistle, followed by five higher ones, all on the same pitch. Each white-throat song is beautiful and inspiring.
Fox sparrows are the largest sparrow species in eastern North America. They nest in mixed coniferous/deciduous forests of Canada, but come south for the winter, often living among the shrubbery of suburbs, as well as along hedgerows between fields and on the edges of woodlands. They particularly like the suburbs because of the coniferous trees on the lawns, which remind them of their nesting niches.
Fox sparrows have orange-brown tails and rumps and are a reddish-brown all over, including their streaking, which is colored like the fur of red foxes, hence their common name. They scratch among fallen leaves and dead grasses for seeds and invertebrates. And their songs, which they sing in the suburbs before migrating north in spring, are loud, clear and inspiring.
Chipping sparrows winter farther south than my home in Pennsylvania, but they come here, and farther north, to raise young. They, too, like suburban areas with their numerous conifers of various kinds, particularly arborvitae, because they hatch offspring in petite nurseries in those sheltering trees.
Chipping sparrows have orange-red crowns, a broad, white stripe above each eye and a black streak through each eye, which makes them, particularly the males, quite handsome. Males utter long trills that are characteristic of new suburbs with their many young, sheltering evergreen trees that chippers nest in.
Watch for sparrows in your yard. They are mostly plain in feathering, but have beauties as well. And, although they hide among shrubbery and other plants, they can be spotted at times while feeding, or getting water, or raising young in suburban areas, and along hedgerows and woodland edges.
No comments:
Post a Comment